TCL confirms termination of Group CEO

Trinidad Cement Ltd (TCL) has published an announcement to its stakeholders following a notice in which it confirmed that it would be authorising a full review of the operational and financial condition of the company and its subsidiaries in order to guarantee the long-term sustainability of the Group.

The notice was released in August 2014, after a Special (Compulsory) Meeting of Shareholders. This advised stakeholders of the suspension of Dr Rollin Bertrand from the position of Group CEO and from all Committee and Executive positions while the review was being undertaken. On the day of the shareholder meeting in August, Bertrand resigned from his role as director but not that of CEO. His resignation was accompanied by that of five other board members, who have since been replaced by TCL. The most recent announcement informs stakeholders that Bertrand has been terminated from his role as Group CEO following a review carried out by the Board of Directors.

TCL also confirmed that representatives had met with lenders on 29 September to provide an update on the current state of the company. PriceWaterhouseCoopers, who the board had commissioned to perform a financial assessment of the company, presented their initial findings at the meeting. According to TCL, ‘subsequent to the meeting, the Board of Directors took a decision to place a hold on all payments due under the existing Restructured Loan Agreements and proposed a “standstill”. A comprehensive restructuring plan will be submitted by 31 October 2014 and will include actions to preserve the ongoing operations of the company, and to ensure its overall long-term viability.’